The Sims 4 is a fun social simulation title that takes players to a virtual realm where they have absolute control over every facet of their characters’ lives. Players can shape their Sims’ destinies by making their career choices, selecting their homes, and even choosing their family relationships. This unique premise appeals to the players of all ages.
One of the most exciting aspects of The Sims 4 is the ability to guide Sims through different phases of their lives. However, some players may want to age up their Sims for various reasons. Not only does doing so allow players to witness their Sims’ growth, but it also opens doors to new challenges. Whether players are eager to witness a Sim’s development or simply want to explore new challenges, this guide will outline how to move Sims to the next life stage in The Sims 4.
How to Age Up a Sim in The Sims 4
There are seven different stages of life for characters in The Sims 4 (baby, toddler, child, teen, young adult, adult, and elder). Simmers have the power to alter these life stages, moving their Sim to any specific stage they want to.
Sims age up naturally as time passes, and as Sims age, they progress through different life stages. All that players need to do is wait for the game to notify them about the incoming birthday of the Sim. Just like in real life, the birthdays of Sims act as a reminder that they have aged up from their previous life stage.
In the game, each life stage has a specific time duration by default, but players can also adjust the length of these stages in the game settings. Usually, the baby stage spans three days. After three days as a baby, a Sim becomes a toddler. The toddler life stage lasts for seven days, while the child stage spans 13 days. Following this, a Sim transitions into the teen stage, which continues for 14 days. The young adult stage has 24 days, adulthood lasts for 24 days, and lastly, elders have around 10 days.
Bake a Cake
This is another effective way to advance Sims to the next stage of their lives. In this method, players can start by going to the kitchen in their Sim’s home and using the stove or refrigerator there. Upon interacting, players will see a few options. Players will need to click ‘Cook,’ and in the meals menu, they will find different types of cakes. They can choose any cake for this purpose, and once it is ready, they will have to place it at the center of a counter or a table.
Next, click on the cake and choose the ‘Add Birthday Candles’ option. This will place candles on the cake. Now, players should have the Sim who they want to age up interact with the cake again and choose ‘Blow Out Candles.’ It is pertinent to mention that toddlers can’t cook in The Sims 4, so players should have an elder Sim bake the cake. Upon blowing the candles, gamers will get the notification that their toddler Sim is now a child.
Age Up a Sim in CAS
Baking a cake and blowing out candles can be a time-consuming process, so players seeking a more convenient way should consider using cheats to age up their Sims. Press Ctrl+Shift+C on a PC to open the cheat box. On a Mac, press Ctrl+Command+C, while the console requires players to hit all four triggers simultaneously. Now that the cheats are enabled, players can type "testingcheats true" in the cheat dialogue box.
Aging up a Sim is not as simple as players will have to enter the CAS mode first. Once players are there, they can modify anything for their Sim, be it their traits or age. For that, type "cas.fulleditmode" to access Create-A-Sim.
Players will need to go to the Sim that they want to age up and click it while holding the ‘Shift’ key. With this action, a menu will appear on the screen containing a few options. Choose ‘Modify in CAS’ and select the desired life stage for the Sim. For instance, gamers who wish to age up a toddler will need to select the child's life stage and then click the ‘tick’ mark to confirm the decision.
Use a Mod
While using mods is indeed an option, players rarely use them to age up their Sims because of the sheer number of other more convenient options. However, if the aforementioned methods don’t work for some reason, Simmers can always resort to mods, such as Mod The Sims, Maxis Match CC World, etc.
As fun as aging up a Sim is, it is important to remember that the toddler stage plays a key role in a Sim’s development. This is because Sims develop imagination, communication, thinking, and movement skills during this stage.
The Sims 4 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.